What is the ultimate Fly-In and the World's Greatest Aviation Celebration? Every year in July, the small town of Oshkosh, Wisconsin opens its gates to the greatest AirVenture and aviation attractions that cannot be found anywhere else. Quickly, this sleepy town turns into a buzzing bee hive of aviators, pilots, aviation enthusiasts, airplane builders, airplane sellers and buyers, exhibitors, photographers, aerospace engineers and specialists giving lectures on a wide spectrum of topics that make flying what it is today.

This year, AirVenture Oshkosh celebrated it's 50th consecutive year and during the 11-day period (July 19th - July 29th), Wittman Regional Airport's Tower handled 16,807 aircraft operations giving an average of 127 takeoffs and landings per hour (EAA, 2019). This significant number of operations indicates a simple fact that the air traffic controllers up in the tower are on another level. In fact, in a highly competitive environment, the air traffic controllers are carefully chosen especially for this event and represent the best of the best according to Jim Ivey.

So what does the schedule at Wittman Regional Airport during AirVenture look like? Daily airshows, lectures and forums, STOL competition, evening airshows, a lot of walking, chitchatting with fellow aviators and vendors, sticker hunting, picture taking and mostly having a wonderful time. With a total of 2,758 showplanes, 10,000+ aircraft, 1,500 forums and workshops, and attendance of 642,000 (EAA, 2019), one could feel overwhelmed and start exhibiting "Groundhog Day" symptoms. If I ever get stuck in the time continuum, I wish my Groundhog Day was one day in Oshkosh during AirVenture.

As a European living in the USA, being a part of AirVenture was an unforgettable reminder of how genuinely the USA celebrates the wonders of aviation. However, apart from just having a blast, AirVenture also offers learning experience where I could absorb very interesting facts which are lesser known to an average visitor and which were presented to me during an enlightening conversation with Aerospace Engineer, avid Aviator, and Pecan Farmer (yes, he is all three in one) - Jim Ivey. Jim was kind enough to show me some of the rare aircraft and explained what AirVenture means for people like him.

Just like every year, the War Birds attract a lot of attention and send shivers down the spine as one watches the USAF Heritage Flight while the majestic engines roar in the sky. It almost seemed the whole AirVenture was all about the War Birds which would only reflect the fact they were up more often than at the previous AirVentures in Oshkosh because this year's convention theme was Fighters. While the Twin Mustang was stealing a lot of attention as the only flying aircraft of this type in the world, Jim's eye was caught by the British Royal Navy Fairy Firefly and the Royal Air Force deHavilland Mosquito.

However, apart from the War Birds category where most of the flying gems are listed, Jim spotted a pretty rare bird that is worth mentioning in a different category - an air racing bird - Nemesis NXT Reno Sport Class Air Racer. The engineering and design of this speed machine with Jon Sharp behind the controls has broken several speed records in the past and represents the top class in the air racing category.

Not too far from all the buzzing, one could hop on a yellow school bus (a volunteer transport system secured by AirVenture) and take a little trip to the Sea Plane Base where aircraft on floats were lining the shore. Boat rides were welcoming the visitors to look closer at some of the birds on floats during a lovely sunny day.

If you go to AirVenture you will see a lot which also means you will be walking a lot. With several miles a day on your feet snapping photos of the many, many beautiful airplanes on display will leave you happily exhausted at the end of each day.

And of course, the airshows filled afternoons with roaring engines in the sky where sharp, crucial aviator skills paint a spectacular picture for every aviation enthusiast.

AirVenture Oshkosh is not only attractive for aviators and pilots, it is also very popular among ordinary people just like me who love visiting the airshows, walking around, looking at hundreds of different airplanes, shopping for cool aviation souvenirs, and taking thousands of photos. What do people like Jim appreciate about AirVenture that people like me would not usually even know about? Well, the fact that it is centered around experimental aircraft, primarily homebuilts. Jim adds, "This is the heart and soul of EAA." Jim also enjoys the different vendors and exhibitors offering wide spectrum of services and products that any aircraft homebuilder needs is like a candy store. One can browse through special tools and learn about the latest trends in technology or take advantage of show specials on the deals.

To summarize this marvelous trip, AirVenture not only gathered a lot of aviation enthusiasts again this year, it also showed someone like me (who grew up in central Europe not knowing the freedom of aviation that only the USA has and celebrates so genuinely) what the world of aviation truly means, why it is so intoxicating, and why I am so happy to be the part of it as well.